Wednesday, April 8, 2009

Erythrina herbacea

Fabaceae

Cherokee Bean is an herbaceous perennial member of the legume family native to the Southeast on down into Eastern Mexico. The genus Erythrina is found all over the world in mostly tropical regions with some members growing into trees. E. herbacea stays as a shrub or dies down completely every year. The flower spikes often appear before the foliage. The bright red seeds are decorative but extremely poisonous.